Ford Performance Gets Sideways In The Focus RS With The Drift Stick

Last year at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, the team at Ford Performance announced it had created the world’s first electronically controlled performance handbrake for the Ford Focus RS. Dubbed the Drift Stick, this rally inspired upgrade was developed by the same performance team that designed the industry-first Drift Mode for this hot hatch and was even approved none other than the head Hoonigan himself, Ken Block.

Instead of designing a hydraulic handbrake could have required multiple modifications to the vehicle, the team set out to develop an electronic handbrake that would provide daily drivers with the quickest possible way to get the Focus RS sideways for large-angle drifts. The factory hot-rodding division recently released videos detailing the testing and installation of this fun-inducing application of technology.

The Ford Performance Drift Stick is the first-ever, rally inspired electronic handbrake, developed and designed for Focus RS and approved by rally and Gymkhana star Ken Block.

Drift Stick Features

• Instant engagement and release

• Easy installation with no permanent modifications

• Easy upgrading and diagnostics via a USB port

Before the Focus RS Drift Stick was released to the public, the entire design team was given the opportunity to experience just how well the handbrake performed when combined with the hot hatches drift mode, which is shown in the video above.

“The passionate engineers at Ford Performance are also enthusiasts,” former global director, Ford Performance, Dave Pericak said . “Everyone here is encouraged to think outside the box, so project ‘Wicked Stick’ was born. Our engineers will leverage the learnings from its development for many future products for Ford Performance and, ultimately, take back even more of an innovative spirit when they rejoin our mainstream engineering teams.”

If the idea of having fun with this high-tech bolt-on is intriguing, you can see how to install it below, and check out its official site right here for more information.